Wave control and control circuit



M. G. CROSBY 2,250,095

WAYE.. CONTBOL AND. CONTROL CIRCUIT Filed May 25. 1938 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR 2175er ATTORNEY July 22, 1941.

July z2, 1941. M, CRSBY 2,250,095

WAVE CONTROL AND CONTROL CIRCUT Filed May 25, 193s O ls sheets-sheet 2 5 'C/VF [FF'C l :E I rl l ling. 6 1749. 7

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,'ZI INVENTOR MURRAY 5. ['KUSBY ATTORN EY M. G. CROSBY Filed May 25, 1938 SSheetS-Sheet 3 Il E H Fv mm 1( mW um M0 I7.. W MK k Mmm 4 UE/ mu W H :1111 a C WAVE CONTROL AND CONTROL CIRCUIT July 22, 1941.

-II- rc 4R0/FK SOURCE Patented July 22, 1941 WA\Ey CONTROL AND CONTROL CIRCUIT Murray G. Crosby, Riverhead, N. Y., assigner to Radio Corporation of America, a corporation of Delaware Application May 25, 1938, Serial No. 209,919

6 Claims.

Thisapplication concernsfa new and improved voltage control means of the reactance tube type and the application of the same to new and improved signalling circuits such as frequency and phase modulators. The novel reactance tubes are in accordance with my invention used to vary the tuning `of any circuit such as for example, an oscillator or amplier tuned circuit. In my invention I apply the principles of push-pull and cascade amplification to reactance tubes known in the art so as to provide greater and more linear degrees of reactance variation.

Reactance tubes as referred to above have been disclosed in Travis United States applications Serial #4,793 led February 4, 1935 and Serial #19,563 filed May 3, 1935. Improvements on the reactance tube referred to in general above have also been disclosed in my United States applications serieu #165,056 filed September 22.`

1937, Patent No. 2,156,374, May 2, 1939, and Serial #167,344 filed October 5, 1937, Patent No. 2,156,375, May 2, 1939.

In describing my invention reference will be made to the attached drawings wherein;

Figure l illustrates a novel reactance tube system including means for amplifying one of the voltages supplied in phase quadrature to the reactance tube electrodes to thereby increase the reactive effect of the tube. The phase displacing circuit for producing the substantially phase quadrature potentials used to obtain the reactive effect is placed in the coupling circuit between the reactance tube and the amplifying reactance tube. In this modification controlling voltages from any source are supplied to electrodes of the amplifying reactance tube and the reactance tube to thereby control through a greatery range the reactive effects;

Figures 1a and 1b are diagrammatic showings of an oscillator and a wave amplifier which may be controlled by the reactive effect produced in the reactance circuit of Figure 1 to produce frequency and phase modulation respectively;

Figure 2 is a modified reactance circuit Wherein a pair of reactance tubes have their electrodes supplied with controlling potentials in push-pull and their output electrodes in parallel to thereby increase the reactive effect and at the same time improve the linearity of said eiects with respect to the controlling potentials Figure 3 is a modification of Figure 2;

Figures 4 and 5 are phase shifting reactances utilized in explaining the manner in which the of the arrangement substantially phase quadrature voltages are obtained on the electrodes of the reactance tube;

Figures 6 and 7 are vector diagrams used in explaining the circuits of Figures 4 and 5; while Figure 8 is a phase modulator circuitlutilizing a reactance tube in a novel manner to control the phase of wave energy being amplified in accordance with signalling voltages.

In the circuit of Figure 1 cascade amplification is utilized to amplify the phase shifted substantially phase quadrature of feedback voltage of the reactance tube. ternating voltage of the reactance tube is` fed back to the grid by means of a phase shifter which imparts a phase shift to the voltage. In this known system, however, the voltages fed back are not amplified. Such a system would be as if the tube 3 of Figure 1 was omitted and the phase quadrature voltages supplied from the anode 6 of tube 2 directly to the phase shifting circuit CiRir and from the adjacent terminals of CiRi `directly to the grid I0 of tube 2. Under these circumstances, assume that voltages from any'circuit to be controlled is supplied to the terminal of lead 5 and from lead 5 to the anode 6 of tube 2 and from anode 6 to the right-hand terminal of C1 (tube I8, circuit I2, and condenser II omitted). The value of resistance R1 is made small as compared to the reactance of the con- .denser C1 so that the current through the circuit is largely reactive and leads the voltage by about 90. Since the voltage drop through R1 is in phase with the current the phase quadrature relation between the radio frequency potentials on 6 and I0 necessary for the reactive eiect is obtained. The tube reactance, that is, the reactance between electrodes 6 and I4 of tube 2 connected to any radio frequency circuit may be utilized to control the reactance of the said circuit. This reactive effect which may be considered inductive or capacitive, is in turn controlled by the potentials supplied to the controlling potential lead I3 and from lead I3 to control grid II).

In my improved circuit I amplify one of the voltages supplied substantially in phase quadrature from anode 6 to control electrode I0.

In the circuit of Figure 1 the alternating current voltage supplied from the circuit, the re actance of which is to be controlled is supplied to anode 6 from lead 5 and to coupling condenser II and from condenser II to the control grid electrode I8 of an electron discharge tube 3 amplified in said tube 3 and supplied from the Ordinarily the plate all anode I6 thereof to tuned circuit I2 and fed from the high voltage end of tuned circuit I2 to the phase shifting and coupling condenser C1 and from the latter condenser to the control grid I of reactance tube 2.

The cathodes I4 and 20 of tubes 2 and 3 are connected to ground by bias resistor and bypass condenser` units 2I and 23 respectively. Grid bias resistor R1 serves also as a phase shifting resistance. Operating potentials are supplied to the tube electrodes as desired in the usual fashion from sources of potential not shown.

R1C1 constitutes the phase shifting circuit which shifts the phase of the amplified alternating voltage supplied from the anode I6 of tube 3 and applies it to the grid III of amplifier tube 2. This phase shifting circuit may be replaced by a tuned transformer or any other phase shifting circuit. Grid leak I5 and resistor R1 are used to apply voltage from lead I3 connected with any control voltage source to the control grids I0, I8 of tubes 2 and 3, respectively to thereby vary the overall gain of both of these tubes and consequently vary the effective reactance at the plate 5 of tube 2. When controlling potentials such as modulating potentials are applied to the lead I3 they produce reactive effects which are supplied between 5 and ground or cathode I4.

This reactive effect may be utilized as illustrated in Figure la to frequency modulate an oscillator. For example, by connecting lead 5 to lead 29 this effect may be used to control the 'reactance of a tuned circuit 3I of an oscillator system including tube 32 to thereby frequency modulate at signal frequency the oscillations produced in the tube and system and supplied from 3 I`V to a radio frequency amplifier, frequency multiplier, etc., in 34. Frequency modulated energy from 34 may be supplied to any load such as for example, an aerial 35.

Moreover, the reactive effect produced as described above between anode 6 and cathode I4 may be applied to an arrangement such as shown in Figure 1b to produce phase modulated oscillations. vIn Figure 1b wave energy from any source 40 is supplied to tuned circuit 42 and from circuit V42 to the control grid 44 of an electron discharge tube 45 and the amplied energy is supplied from the anode 46 of 45 by way of tuned circuit 48 to a power amplifier and/or frequency multiplier and/or limiter 49 and from 49 to any load circuit such as for example, an aerial 50. Now, if we connect the anode 46 as to the lead 4'I and connect the said lead 4'I to the lead 5 and to the high voltage end of tuned circuit 48 and complete the reactance circuit by connecting the cathode I4 of tube 2 to the cathode 43 of tube 45, the reactive effects are applied to the tuned circuit 48 of the electron discharge device 45. The reactive effects modify the reactance of circuit 48 and thereby vary the phase of the wave energy supplied by tube 45 to unit 49 in accordance with the controlling potentials supplied to lead I3. These controlling potentials may represent signals.

'I'he circuit of Figure 1 has for a primary advantage, the fact that the over-all gain of the reactance tube 2 is increased due to the cascade amplification supplied vby tubes 2 and 3 operating together. Since the amount of variable reactance obtainable from a reactance tube is dependent upon the gain or amplification of that tube, an increase of that gain will increase the amount of variable reactance available. A further advantage of this type of reactance tube circuit lies in the fact that the phase shifting circuit R1C1 may be made such as to very lightly load the tuned circuit which is being controlled. For example, if the reactance tube circuit of Figure 1 is connected at 5 to lead 29 of Figure 1a, the reactance tube circuit places a light load on the oscillator circuit, including tube 32 and tuned circuit 3| and therefore operating difficulties such as maintenance of substantially constant mean oscillating frequency, etc., are materially reduced. With a single reactance tube as known in the prior art in order to produce high degrees of reactive variation, resistance R1 must be lowered to values which appreciably load the controlled or modulated tuned circuit such as for example the tuned circuits 3l of Figure 1a and 48 of Figure lb.

In my novel cascaded amplification reactance system, the effective-loading produced by the reactance tube may be made very light so that the Variable reactance will have a high effective circuit Q. Hence, for phase modulation purposes as illustrated in Figures 1 and 1b less reactive variation will be required to produce Va given amount of phase modulation than would be required if the Q of the reactance tube were lower.

Modulations or controlling potentials are applied to the control grids of either one of the tubes 2 and 3, singly if desired or as shown to both of these tubes or the modulating or controlling potentials from I3 may be applied" to other electrodes of one or both of the tubes 2 and 3.

Obviously, my novel reactance circuit is particularly applicable to variable tuning systems wherein the frequency of a receiver is automatically controlled in accordance with controlling potentials obtained in frequency ldiscriminating circuits or otherwise. In this case, terminal 5 of the reactance tube system of Figure 1, is con# nected to the tuned circuit of the receiver heterodyne oscillator and as before, the automatic frequency control potentials are applied to the lead I3. More details as to the application of a reactance tube of any type and in particular of the reactance tube of the present invention to automatic frequency control systems have been described in detail in my United States applications Serial #16,591 filed April 16, 1935, Patent No. 2,123,716, July 12, v1938, and Serial #171,820 filed October 30, 1937, Patent No. 2,163,747, June 27, 1939, and in my United States Patents #2,065,565 dated December 29, 1936; #2,042,831 dated June 2, 1936; #2,076,175 dated April 6, 1937; and #2,085,008 dated June 29, 1937.

In the novel circuit of Figure 2, I apply the principles of push-pull to the reactance tubes 61, B8 for the purpose of producing large reactive effects which more linearly follow the controlling potentials supplied from any source to a jack I0 and a transformer 69. In this arrangement the lead 5 is again adapted to be connected to any tuned circuit, the frequency tuning of which is to be controlled, and voltages from which are supplied to the anodes l2, 14 of tubes 61, 68 respectively. These voltages are also supplied to coupling condensers 85, 81 and from said coupling condensers to phase shifting resistances R1 and R1 respectively. The voltage from R1 is impressed on the control grid 89 of tube 51 and this phase shifting circuit is completed by connecting a capacitive reactance C1 to the cathode 9| of tube 61. The controlling potential ycircuit to grid 89 is completed through a resistor 93 connected to one end of the secondary winding of transformer 69. Resistance 93 also completes the direct current circuit between the cathode 9| and controlling electrode 89 of tube 61 since the electrical center of the secondary winding of 69 is connected to said cathode 9|. The voltages supplied by 81 to R'1 are supplied therefrom to the control electrode 94 of tube 68 and the phase shifting circuit is completed by an inductive reactance Li connecting control grid 94 through one of a pair of bypassing condensers 95 to the cathode 91 of tube 68. It is noted that the inductance L1 also has a double purpose since it completes the direct current circuit between the control grid 94 and cathode 91.

Tube 61 has its plate voltage fed back to its grid by means of a phase shifting circuit RiCi and coupling condenser 85, while tube 68 has its feedback voltage applied to its grid by means of phase shifting circuits R'iL1 and coupling condenser 81. By virtue of the fact that one of the tubes obtains its feedback voltage from a capacitive reactance drop and the other obtains its feedback voltage from an inductive reactive drop, the effective reactance variable at the plate circuits of the two tubes will be opposite for equidirectional element voltage variations. As will be noted, the controlling or modulating potentials are supplied by means of a push-pull transformer to the controlling electrodes 89 and 94 so that the tubes are controlled or modulated in phase displaced relation with respect to each other.

When the potential supplied to the control grid 89 goes up the capacity reactance effect is increased so that the reactive effect of tube 61 is increased. Simultaneously the control potential supplied to the grid 94 goes down and this increases the inductive reactance of tube 94. In other Words, the capacity and inductive eects of the tube 61 vary in phase as a consequence of the phase displaced control thereof.

The reactive effects are added in the outputs which are in parallel and may be supplied from the lead 5 to any circuit to be controlled. For instance, lead 5 may be connected to leads 29 or 41 of the modifications shown in Figures 1a and 1b to produce frequency or phase modulation respectively in the same manner as described in connection With Figures 1 and 1b.

The push-pull reactance tube circuit described above produces a larger and more linear reactance variation which will allow of a greater degree of control of the modulation of the potentials supplied to the reactance tube, for example, to the jack and transformer 69 of Figure 2. Consequently, a greater and more faithful degree of frequency or phase modulation can be produced.

The circuit of Figure 3 employs push-pull principles and utilizes a phase shifting circuit which is more efficient than the type using a combination of a resistance and a reactance. The circuit is shown as a frequency modulator modulating the frequency of tuned circuit |26 of grounded-grid oscillator |29. Tuned circuit |25 is coupled to the oscillator circuit |26 and, by virtue of the fact that the coupling is inductive, a 90 phase rotation is produced at'the resonant frequency of the tuned circuits. That is to say,

the phase of the voltage across tuned circuit |26 will be shifted 90 when it appears across tuned circuit |25. This phase shift is inherent in a tuned transformer in which' the coupling coeficient is less than unity. By mid-tapping tuned circuit |25 reactance tube |23 is fed a Y voltage 180 out of phase with that fed to reactance tube |24. Consequently, the variable reactance of tube |23\ is opposite in reactance polarity to that of tube |24 for equi-directional element voltage changes. This requires the application of the modulating potentials differentially by means of transformer |21. The modulating potentials are applied at jack |28. The particular circuit of Figure 3 utilizes suppressor` grid modulation. However, any other type of modulation such as the grid inodulation of the previously mentioned circuits or plate and screen modulation may be used. The advantage of the circuit of Figure 3 lies in the fact that the phase shifter is highly ecient and may be adjusted so that the reactance tube has a minimum amount of loading effect onthe circuit to be modulated. This circuit may be utilized for phase modulation or for automatic frequency control in the same manner as the previously described circuits.

`Obviously the tubes of Figures 2 and 3 which are in parallel as to the reactive effect may also be modulated or controlled in the same direction by the controlling or modulating potentials. Where the tubes are controlled differentially as in Figures 2 and 3 the amount of control or modulation of each tube may be adjusted by moving the taps T on the secondaries of transformers 69 and |21 01T center. Then one tube is modulated over a greater range than the other. In this manner the linearity of the produced reactive effect may be improved in some cases.

In Figure 4, I have shown a phase shifting circuit such as for example, used in Figure 2. Figure 6 is a vector diagram of the voltages obtained by this phase shifting circuit. In Figure 4 E is the applied voltage such as for example, the voltage supplied from any tuned circuit to anode 12 and cathode 9| of tube 61 of Figure 2. XCi is the reactance of Ci and is made low as compared to the resistance of R1 with respect to the frequency of the voltages involved so that the current through this circuit is largely resistive and is in phase with the voltage as shown by the arrowhead indicated by I in Figure 6. The reactance drop -across condenser Ci will be out of phase with the current so that XCiI is 90 out of phase with E as shown.

Figure 5 shows the phase shifter circuit for an arrangement such as shown at CiRi in Figure 1; Figure 7 is the vector diagram illustrating the manner in which the phase shift is obtained in this latter circuit. The reactance of condenser C2 is made large as compared with the resistance of R2 with respect to the frequency of the voltages involves so that the current through this circuit is largely determined by the condenser. Since the current is capacitively reactive it leads the voltage E by 90 as shown in Figure 7. The drop across Rz will be in phase with the current through this circuit. Consequently, the drop across R2 is 90 out of phase with the voltage E and the required phase shift is effected.

Of course, I do not limit my invention to the use of reactance tubes including the reactance amplifying effect disclosed in this application. Obviously reactive circuits as illustrated in Figure 8 may be u sed to phase modulate wave energy within the spirit of my invention. In this circuit the reactance tube |40 has a grid electrode, that adjacent plate |42, and its cathode |44 connected to a source of controlling or modulating potentials |45. The reactance or output of the tube |40 is connected in shunt to the tuned circuit TC of a. carrier wave amplier |48. The anode |50 of this tube also is connected by a coupling condenser |5| and phase shifting resistance R1 and phase shifting condencer Ci to the control grid |52 and cathode |44. The reactive effects produced between the anode and cathode/ of tube |40 tune the circuit TC to modulate the phase of the wave energy supplied from the carrier wave source |55 to the control grid |53 and cathode |55 of amplifier tube |48. The phase modulated wave energy is supplied to any utilization circuit which may include frequency multipliers, limiters, etc., as shown.

I claim:

1. A variable impedance comprising a pair of electron discharge tubes with their anodes and cathodes in a common alternating current circuit, capacitive phase shifter means and inductive phase shifter means connected with each of said tubes respectively for feeding phase shifted voltages from said common circuit to corresponding respective input electrodes in said tubes, said voltages fed to said input electrodes being in phase quadrature relative to the alternating voltages on the anodes of said tubes, and means including a reactive connection between a source of control potential and the said input electrodes for varying the amplification of said tubes to produce a variable impedance in said common circuit.

2. A variable impedance comprising a pair of electron discharge tubes with their anodes and cathodes connected in a common alternating current circuit, capacitive phase shifter means and inductive phase shifter means connected with each of said tubes respectively for feeding phase shifted voltages from said common alternating current circuit to corresponding respective controlling electrodes of said tubes, said voltages fed to said controlling electrodes being in phase quadrature relative to the alternating voltages on the anodes of said tubes, and means including a transformer coupling a source of control potential to said controlling electrodes for relatively varying the amplification of said tubes to thereby produce a variable impedance in said common circuit.

3. In a system for producing substantially linear reactive effects, a pair of electron discharge devices each having at least an anode, a cathode, and a control grid, a circuit for applying voltages in phase to the anodes of said tubes, a phase shifting circuit including a capacity connecting the anode of one of said tubes to its cathode, means applying the alternating voltage developed across the capacity to the control grid of said one of said tubes, a second phase shifting circuit l. including an inductance connectingthe anode of the other of said tubes to itsvcathode, means applying the alternating voltfrequency control network comprising a pair of space discharge devices each including at least a cathode, a plate and a control grid, connections from the plates of each of said devices to said resonant circuit, reactive means of opposite sign. separately connected between said resonant circuit and the control grids of different ones of said pair of devices respectively for deriving alternating current voltages from the resonant circuit which are applied to said grids, said derived voltages applied to the control grids being in substantial phase quadrature with the alternating voltages at the plates of said devices, a source of alternating potential for controlling the amplification of each of said devices, and purely reactive means coupling said source to said devices for applying said controlling potential thereto.

5. In combination with a resonant circuit, a frequencycontrol network comprising a pair of space discharge devices each including at least a cathode, a plate and a control grid, connections from the plates of each of said devices to said resonant circuit, reactive means connected between said resonant circuit and the control grids of said pair of devices for deriving alternating current voltages from the resonant circuit which are applied to said grids, said derived voltages applied to the control grids being in substantial phase quadrature with the alternating voltages at the plates of said devices, a source of alternating potential for controlling the amplification of each of said devices, purely reactive means coupling said source to said devices for applying said controlling potential thereto, said first named reactive means comprising a capacitative path connected directly across the resonant circuit and connected with the plate, cathode and grid of one device, and an inductive path connected directly across the resonant circuit and connected with the plate, cathode and grid of the second device.

6. In a reactance simulation network, a pair of electron discharge devices each provided with at least a cathode, an anode electrode and a control electrode, a common alternating current output circuit connecting the anode electrodes of said devices, a capacitative path connected between the anode and cathode of one device for developing alternating voltage in substantial phase quadrature with the alternating potential of the anode of said one device, means for applying said quadrature voltage to the control electrode of said one device, an inductive path connected between the anode and cathode of the second device for developing a second quadrature voltage with respect to the anode of the second device, means for applying the second quadrature voltage to the second device control electrode, and means for varying the electron current iiow to the anode electrodes of both of said devices thereby to vary the magnitude of the reactive effect produced across said common output circuit.

MURRAY G. CROSBY. 

